The Arctic This Week Take Five: Week of May 31, 2021
US Interior Department Suspends Oil and Gas Leases in ANWR
On June 1, Reuters reported that the U.S. Department of the Interior will suspend oil and gas development leases that were granted in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) during the final days of the Trump administration, pending review of alleged “legal deficiencies” in the environmental review conducted to pave the way for the leases. Environmentalists and many Indigenous organizations celebrate the move because ANWR is important for migratory caribou, birds, and Indigenous ways of life. The lease sale generated limited interest from oil companies, but representatives of the Alaska Oil and Gas Corporation (AOGA) still expressed their disappointment and outrage, as did Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy and Senator Lisa Murkowski. (Anchorage Daily News, Arctic Daily News, New York Times, Reuters)
Take 1: Although this move is outwardly boldly environmental on behalf of the Biden Administration, it has a fine line to walk between environmentalism and the safeguarding of Alaska’s economic baseline. For the last six years, Alaska has faced severe budget deficits as a result of declining oil production on the North Slope. According to United States Geological Survey estimates, the Alaskan Arctic coastal plain which includes ANWR could hold 8 billion barrels of oil. A major discovery could boost much-needed jobs and state revenue. Although the Biden administration is adamant about protection of ANWR, it understands these realities and also stood in support of the development of the Willow oil field, just west of ANWR, earlier this week. While the duality secures the economic status quo for Alaskans – for better or worse – it also generates frustration and an impression of double-standards for environmental and climate advocacy groups. This balancing act is seen in politics across the Arctic, where governments including Norway, Sweden and Russia are both dependent on resource revenue, and seeking to protect wildlife, local economy, Indigenous livelihoods and the environment more broadly.
OneWeb Launches 36 Satellites to Improve Arctic Wireless
On June 1, VoIP reported that OneWeb, a communications service provider headquartered in London, announced a successful launch of 36 satellites from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Florida. The launch is the fourth in a series of five launches under OneWeb’s Five to 50 Initiative, which allows the company to offer connectivity in the European and North American Arctic, including the UK, Alaska, Northern Europe, Greenland, Iceland, the Arctic Seas and Canada. Following the successful launches, the company hopes to begin to offer service to consumers in 2022. (VoIP)
Take 2: OneWeb is as close to a mom-and-pop aspirational internet service provider as you can get, and this successful development is a reminder that the providers of Arctic connectivity are surprisingly varied and international, and can be effective at a small scale. While megaprojects such as Megafon’s Arctic Connect cable may be more efficient and provide better connectivity, they are also expensive and face major challenges including susceptibility to changes in international relations and perceived security threats. Smaller satellite connectivity providers such as OneWeb may benefit from vertical integration of their business – ownership of the full satellite-to-service chain – and we are likely to continue to see different services at different scales, like patchwork, covering the Arctic as the demand rises. The specific goal of the Five to 50 Initiative is to provide satellite internet coverage for the Arctic, which also indicates that global corporations are becoming increasingly aware of the diversity of investment and development opportunities in the Arctic, beyond traditional natural resource development.
U.S. Congress Seeks to Establish an Arctic Ambassador
On May 28, High North News reported that a bipartisan group of Congressmen including Don Young (R-AK), Rick Larsen (D-WA), Brian Mast (R-FL), and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) have introduced a bill aimed at establishing a U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs. In their advocacy for establishment of an Ambassador and more formalized diplomatic engagement in the Arctic, they cite the need for strong Arctic leadership, and that the United States is well-positioned to maintain security and stability in the region. In order to pass, the bill will need a majority in the House of Representatives and Senate, then approval by President Biden. (High North News)
Take 3: It is very satisfying to see the U.S. formally recognize its diplomatic potential in the Arctic, and move forward to establish a formal diplomatic framework for the region. Although there have been several attempts to pass similar bills in the past, this one seems to have more realistic potential of passing due to the heightened bipartisan awareness of Arctic affairs and issues in the U.S., which has grown notably since 2018, and the dedicated attention to Arctic affairs which has been shown by the Biden Administration. Although the U.S.’ diplomatic network suffered during the Trump era and the U.S. is markedly behind other Arctic nations such as Russia and Canada in its operational capabilities in the Arctic, it remains a key linchpin of international relations and global coordination. The U.S.’ heightened diplomatic presence in this regard could help to solidify a more secure and formal set of international relations in the Arctic.
As Chair of the Arctic Council, Russia Will Tackle its Nuclear Waste
On May 26, Arctic Today reported that Russia’s Foreign Ministry will invite international Arctic experts to discuss the recovery of radioactive materials which were dumped into the Arctic Ocean off the coast of Novaya Zemlya by the Soviet Union. According to the Russian Institute for Safe Development of Nuclear Energy, there are six objects which contain more than 90 percent of all the radioactivity, which should be prioritized in the recovery and removal efforts. These include several nuclear reactors and a complete, decommissioned nuclear submarine at the bottom of Stepvogo Bay, which still pose a considerable threat to people and wildlife. Russia hopes to conduct a full technical survey of the area and methods during its Chairmanship of the Arctic Council. (Arctic Today)
Take 4: The clean-up of this kind of submerged nuclear waste is a tricky business – it is difficult, risky, expensive and largely unprecedented at this scale. Although the cleanup is directed at a single site off of the coast of Novaya Zemlya, it has implications for the Arctic radioactive cleanup more broadly. Unfortunately, there are sites of uncontained nuclear waste throughout the international Arctic, including Camp Century in Greenland and lesser-known sites in Canada. While undersea materials pose almost more of a threat in their removal – mishandling could result in an explosive release of radioactive material that would easily be dispersed by the sea water – there is also land-based radioactive waste in the Arctic that poses an increasing threat to environmental health. As Arctic ice caps and permafrost melts, previously contained radioactive material is released and distributed through meltwater. The issue of radioactive waste cleanup will become ever-more pressing as the Arctic melts, and it is great to see Russia leading the way and initiating this ambitious project during its chairmanship of the Arctic Council.
Norwegian and Russian Militaries Rub Shoulders – Rather than Butt Heads – in the Barents
On June 2, High North News reported that Russian and Norwegian forces are currently conducting their annual Barents Exercise in Varanger Fjord, located in the Arctic north, between Norway and Russia. Barents Exercise is aimed at improving the safety of Northern waters in the Barents Sea. It comprises joint training for oil spill response coordinated by the Marine Rescue Service in Russia and the Coastal Administration in Norway, and search-and-rescue exercises coordinated by the Murmansk Rescue Coordination Center and the Joint Rescue Coordination Center for Northern Norway. The Barents Exercise engages the Northern Fleet, Coast Guard, federal SAR institutions in air traffic and Murmansk Air Control Center on the Russian side, and the Coast Radio, the Coast Guard, the 330 and 333 squadrons, National Aviation Authority, Joint Operation Headquarters, Air Traffic Services, and Society for Rescue at Sea on the Norwegian side. It has been an ongoing tradition between the Norwegian and Russian militaries for over 20 years. (High North News)
Take 5: Amidst a barrage of military exercises and perceived escalations in military posturing in the Arctic touted by the media, especially between NATO-member Norway and Russia in the Barents Sea, it is a relief to see the continuation of these cooperative exercises between the two nations. They are evidence of continued commitment to our common goals of maintaining a safe and clean environment in the Arctic as human activity increases, which can be best safeguarded in cooperation, and a reminder to stay focused on opportunities to collaborate internationally on the practical elements of Arctic development. The Barents Exercise provides informal modes of communication between the two militaries through established working relationships, and is in contrast to the prevailing escalatory narrative and tone of other recent military exercises such as the NATO missile defense drill conducted in Norwegian waters last week.